Telescope
by diav
Summary: Set in flashbacks several years after the Season 4 finale.
1. something took you from me

**_Telescope  
_**_By diav_

**Genre:** Friendship/Romance  
**Rating:** T  
**Characters**: Kim Possible, Shego  
**Story Type**: multi-chaptered  
**Summary**: Set in flashbacks several years after the Season 4 finale.  
**Disclaimer**: I do not own any characters from the _Kim Possible_ series.

* * *

**&& something took you from me**

* * *

_September 1,_

_Emmie's growing so quickly these days. I think, in the past month, she's grown another inch. It's uncanny... She'll outgrow me in no time! Every day she reminds me of her mother... She's got her eyes and, not to mention, the unmistakable fiery mane._

_I miss her. But I know she's out there, watching over us._

Shego leaned back on her chair as she stretched out the kinks in her back. She saw that Emmie was huddled on the couch again fast asleep. She shut down her laptop and gently picked up the eight year-old.

Oh, and she's getting heavier too, Shego thought as she tucked Emmie into bed. She gave the child a kiss on the forehead and returned back to the living room to collect her laptop.

Pausing on her way to the bedroom, she picked up a picture frame that was placed on the table. She sighed as she looked at the familiar faces in the picture: two redheads smiling as they sandwiched a slightly younger-looking Shego.

Those were the days, the ebony-haired woman thought.

And I can't stop missing you as each day passes, Kim. I wish you were here.

* * *

"I think you've taken the phrase 'Anything's Possible for a Possible' too far, Kim."

"Dad, it's not like it's something bad. I mean, I love-"

"Kimmie-cub, we raised you to make your own choices in life, but this... This alternate lifestyle you've-"

"Being with Shego is hardly an alternate lifestyle! She's someone I can depend on, someone I care about-"

"-What Emmie needs right now is a father-"

"-Who's to say Shego and I can't raise her like every other couple out there?"

"Frankly, Kim, your mother and I don't think this is a good idea. She was a criminal-"

"-She was pardoned for her crimes after so many years! Besides, she's reformed now."

"How will she provide for you and Emmie? What will you tell Emmie? That she has no father and now you've decided to have some sordid affair with a criminal who you think has redeemed herself to society?"

"Is that what you really think of us being together?"

"What I don't see is what you like about her. She's tried to kill you several times."

"That was the past. Everyone deserves second chances."

"I wouldn't want an ex-con raising my granddaughter."

"Is that your final decision, dad? Is this what you think this is? Some affair with a woman who actually understands me? You don't think we can raise Emmie together?!"

"I don't see what benefits Shego brings to all this."

"Well, if that's how you feel... I'm sorry, I just can't accept this. I love Shego and I love Emmie. I won't let your old-fashioned ways affect how I raise my daughter with Shego. I'm sorry, Dad, but I can't fight with you about this. Either you accept it or you've just lost yourself your daughter and your granddaughter."

"Kimmie. Be reasonable! What kind of future do you expect with a former criminal?"

"I thought my happiness mattered to you, I thought wrong."

"Kimmie!"

Slam.

* * *

"And former teen hero, Kim Possible, has just signed her divorce settlement papers with her old sidekick and now ex-husband, Ron Stoppable. Such a shame. We all thought they were a match made in heaven, didn't we, Bob?"

"That's right, Lea. And who would've thought such a goofy young man would shack up with one of Kim's high school cheerleading teammates behind her back? And only less than a year into their marriage too!"

"Oh, to be young and carefree."

"Except this was an extramarital affair that has now turned into something nasty."

"Dang right it is. Who'd've thought Kim Possible, a goody two-shoes, could be so ruthless in court? Man, I wouldn't want to be in Stoppable's shoes right now."

"Rumour has it that the other woman also walked out on him."

"Tough!"

"Damn right it is. Now he's left with nothing."

"I suppose that's karma for ya."

"Mhmm."

* * *

"Emmie..."

"Yes, mom?"

"Take care of Shego, ok? Oh, honey, don't cry... Everything will be all right."

Sounds of a child sobbing could be heard in the sterile hospital room. The ebony-haired woman standing in the corner could not bear to look at the scene; instead, she was staring at the bed frame and the room's plain decorations that were devoid of any emotional attachment.

How many families have lost loved ones here, she thought. I'm about to be one of them.

"Shego."

The child was now tugging on her sleeve.

"Mom wants to talk to you." The child slipped her hand in hers as a gesture of comfort. Much-needed comfort.

"Hey Grumpy Face, don't be like that," weakly chuckled the redhead in bed.

"Kim..."

The redhead clasped a hand on the woman, a silent plead to not cause a scene in front of Emmie. The woman understood: she was legally now Emmie's guardian since Kim didn't have much time.

"Don't worry, everything'll be fine, Shego. I'll be right here." She pointed to her chest as multiple machines continued beeping. "Every day is a gift."

Shego blinked away tears that had started to form. She struggled for words as she began to see the light slowly fade. Kim took one long look and her lips moved - something Shego couldn't hear, but Emmie understood.

It was the beeping that filled Shego with dread. Because the infernal beeping noises stopped just as she whispered, "I love you too, Kim."

Flatline.

The sounds of a child's strangled sobs could be heard, and the only thing Shego could do was continue to stare at the lifeless body in the hospital bed.

She had never felt so alone. How was she supposed to raise Emmie without the redhead that had brought so much joy in her life?

* * *

"Kim?" asked Shego as she pulled off her shades. She was decked out in workout gear and was jogging through the park when she saw a familiar redhead pushing a stroller.

The redhead raised a hand to block out the sun in her eyes. "Shego?"

"Yeah, I was sure it was you. Taking a walk?"

"Yeah, the baby was being fussy, so I figured a breath of fresh air would be good for the best of us."

"I didn't realise you'd be in this part of Middleton."

"Yeah, the media is ruthless... I figured I might as well be in this area to spare my family from them."

Shego walked alongside the redhead as they made their way around the park. "How have you been? Apart from all this drama..."

"Raising a kid is tough," laughed Kim. "I'm not really getting much sleep because she's so fussy."

"Your mom can help?"

"I sort of moved out to not attract so much attention."

"In this area?"

Kim nodded.

"Strange, I haven't seen you around here."

Kim chuckled. "I actually only just moved out today. All my stuff is still in the car, but the baby started crying, so I decided to take her out for a walk."

Shego peered into the stroller. "She looks just like you." Curious emerald eyes stared right back at the older woman. "What's her name?"

"Emmie."

"How appropriate," chuckled Shego.

"How have you been?"

"Apart from being continually judged by my skin colour and criminal past, I've been good."

"Last I heard, you were in Europe..?"

"Just a rumour, Kimmie. Don't believe the tabloids," shrugged Shego. She then proceeded to stretch her arms and took a swig of water.

"And Drew?"

"Who knows what the blue fool is up to these days? I haven't heard from him since his fertiliser company took off."

"I thought you and him-"

Shego waved her water bottle in Kim's face. "Ew, no. Kimmie, you have to give me more credit than that. No way in hell."

Kim shrugged.

Just then, Emmie proceeded to cry.

"Shhh," Kim cooed. She rummaged through the stroller and found a bottle. Gently, she picked up Emmie and gave the baby the bottle as Shego watched on.

"Is it true?"

"About?"

"I heard that she's the Buffoon's kid?"

Kim shook her head. "I had put in adoption papers shortly after I got married and it was only last week that I was granted rights to be Emmie's guardian. So this all happened after the divorce settlement."

"So the Buffoon..."

"He didn't want kids," Kim said bitterly. "And there's no way in hell I'm letting him have any parental rights for Emmie."

"Oh."

"Sorry, it's just been a long day."

Emmie waved her bottle around to let the adults know she was done. Kim put the bottle away and proceeded to pat the child's back, hoping that Emmie would burp off the excess milk.

Shego watched on before choosing her words carefully. "She looks just like you, Kim. It's actually a bit hard to believe you adopted her."

Kim looked thoughtful for a second before answering. "I guess that's why I picked her. She stood out from the rest."

Shego peered at the baby again. "She's got your eyes." The baby gave her a goofy smile. "And your hair," she added.

Kim shrugged. "Coincidence, I guess."

"Yeah." Shego put her shades back on and stared out into the setting sun. The park was empty this Sunday afternoon and she hadn't completed her routine run. She decided she'd make up for it later. "You need help moving?"

Kim stared at Shego for a minute before answering. "Sure."

"What?"

"You don't have to be nice to me because you feel compelled to. I kicked you into an electrical tower for Pete's sake." Kim put Emmie back into the stroller and tucked her in.

Shego shrugged. "You look like you could use my help if the baby's going to be a handful."

"I don't want your pity about this whole sitch."

"Gosh, Kimmie, you sure are stubborn to refuse help when it's being offered." Shego crossed her arms and glared at the redhead. "I'm not doing this because I pity you about what happened with the Buffoon. It's because I genuinely want to help. How are you going to move things into your place if you're juggling a baby with one hand?"

Kim pondered that for a minute and shrugged. "You have a point."

"Where's your place? I'll swing by after I change."

"It's a small townhouse on Elm and Zenith. Number twenty-four."

"All right, I know where that is... It's just 'round the corner from my place."

* * *

"Kim?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm glad you moved into this neighbourhood."

"Me too."

"I guess reconnecting with you was a good idea. If I hadn't stopped, I would've just run past you and we wouldn't be sitting here today."

The redhead shifted in her seat. Shego had taken them for an outing near the Middleton Bluffs. Emmie was sleeping in her car seat as the two adults simply just stared out into the darkness. It was a clear night, so Shego had thought it would be a good idea to just sit around and watch the stars in her convertible. And talk.

The talk was something both women had dreaded. Something that wasn't necessary, but was needed to clarify the direction their 'friendship' was headed.

Kim hadn't been able to sleep very well for the past few days because of all the pondering of the 'what-ifs' and running through different scenarios in her head. Added to that was that Emmie was extremely fussy during the evenings: she'd cry out and hope that Kim would come by the crib to pick her up.

"So... where exactly are 'we' headed?" asked the redhead. She was sitting on her hands tonight, attempting to quash down any thoughts of trying to even hold Shego's hand.

Shego turned to look at her, gave her a smile, and shrugged. "Wherever you want 'us' to go."

"The thing is, I'm not sure where this'll take us..."

Shego fiddled with the steering wheel. "So... I guess... we'll just be friends then." She bit her lip and simply looked up, hoping that Kim wouldn't notice her disappointment.

"We've always been friends... well, started off as frenemies, I guess, but now friends."

Shego scoffed. "'_Frenemies'_? What are we, in high school?"

"Well, we are acting like two teens who are scared shitless about their feelings," laughed Kim.

Shego howled out in laughter. "We're emotionally constipated, yeah, that's about it."

"Shego," Kim took one of the older woman's hands, "I know you probably don't understand why I'm scared. It's just... there's too much to handle when it comes to me."

"Puh-lease, Kimmie, it can't be as bad as stuff I have to deal with. I'm green! You don't know how many people have given me weird looks-"

"-You're beautiful."

Shego sat stunned by Kim's admission.

"You are, and you should never let people's comments get to you."

Shego sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Kim, do you know how much more bad press you're going to get if whatever's happening between us gets leaked out?"

Kim bit her lip in deep thought before she shook her head. "So be it. I've learned from what happened with Ron that life isn't always fair, things happen, and we all just have to deal with it." She clasped her other hand onto Shego's occupied hand. "I like you, Shego. I don't know what's going on between us, but I've come to rely on you and enjoy your company. You make me happy and Emmie probably feels the same."

Shego blinked. And then stared. And blinked again. When Kim thought she had said the wrong thing, Shego merely hung her head and chuckled.

"What's so funny?" asked the redhead as she was still puzzled over the older woman's reaction.

"Nothing, Kimmie, it's just... how you decided to approach this," said Shego as she looked up. She took her free hand and put it over Kim's hands. "You have a strange way of admitting your feelings, Pumpkin." She turned to look at her dashboard. "And, I, uh, feel the same."

She wasn't too sure what happened next because she felt pain in her chest and was unable to breathe. The redhead had hugged the life out of her for a good five minutes before she started wheezing for air.


	2. you were inspiration

**&& you were inspiration**

* * *

"This is a nice place," said Shego as she put down the last box in the hallway. "How'd you manage to escape your parents' place with all your stuff? Aren't reporters camping outside your house or something?"

"The Sloth has camouflage capabilities... we snuck a bunch of my stuff by parking it several blocks away and cutting through the backyard."

"...Right."

"My brothers have too much time on their hands and tinker with things they find..." The redhead gave a shrug before awkwardly standing in the hall with wide-eyed Emmie in one hand and a bottle in the other. "I, uh, appreciate this, Shego. I'm not sure I would've been able to move all these boxes in here today."

Shego shrugged. It wasn't like she had anything else to do since she had been out of a job for several years but still had enough money to live comfortably.

"Sorry about earlier," the redhead continued. "I shouldn't have assumed that I thought you felt sorry for me."

"Stuff happens, Kimmie. Don't sweat it." Shego looked at her watch. "You need me to help you unpack?"

Touched by Shego's sudden kindness, the redhead shook her head. "I'm probably going to un-box everything later... I should fix up food for Emmie, isn't that right, you little munchkin?"

Emmie cooed and made happy noises as Kim tickled her. Suddenly, the sound of Kim's stomach grumbling made the redhead turn red in embarrassment.

"And food for yourself, doy," laughed Shego. "You got food in your fridge yet?"

Kim shook her head. "I was planning to get groceries later... I only have milk formula and baby food with me."

Shego shook her head. She looked at the baby and then back at Kim again before making a gesture of defeat. "Come over, I'll fix you something."

* * *

"Mom! I'm home!" said Emmie as she came into the house. She heard shuffling and muffled noises before Kim appeared from the bedroom, looking slightly dishevelled.

"How was school today, Emmie?"

"It sucked," replied the child as she sat down on the couch. "Ray and Danny were making fun of me."

"Oh? Why?" Kim sat down beside her daughter and rubbed a hand over Emmie's head.

"Because they say I'm not normal."

"You're normal, Emmie. We all are."

"Then why don't I have a daddy?"

Kim visibly stiffened at the question, right when Shego emerged from the stairs looking perhaps equally dishevelled as Kim, but she had the decency to comb her hair.

"Does having a dad even matter?" questioned Shego as she sat down beside Emmie.

"All the other kids have daddies, Auntie Shego," replied the child.

"You shouldn't always want something just because your friends have it and you don't," said Shego. She gave Kim a sympathetic look: they were bound to have this conversation with Emmie sooner or later. "Is it that important for you to have a daddy?"

The child pondered this for a moment before shaking her head. "You and Mom are just fine."

Shego blushed a little at the answer. Children can be so observant, she thought. Emmie had actually wondered why Shego wasn't living with them because no matter whose place they were at, the three of them were always together. She accepted Shego without any faults since the woman was right there from the start with Kim. The only thing that troubled Shego was that Emmie continually called her "Auntie", which might throw the child into further confusion once Kim has "the talk" with Emmie about having two moms.

"So there's no problem then, if Shego and I look after you?" asked the redhead, who gave Shego a smile.

"No, no problem," said Emmie. She then grinned. "Who needs a dad when I have two awesome moms?!"

Shego felt her heart leap. Maybe this 'talk' wasn't so bad, she thought. Mindlessly, she hugged the little munchkin as Kim let out a sigh of... Was it relief?

Shego and Kim had had a discussion one night about the whole situation: when Emmie was old enough, she would ask questions - how would they answer them?

* * *

"Your apartment is so..."

"Clean?" asked Shego as she fired up the stove. She opted for something simple since it was fast. She rummaged through her cupboards for pasta as Kim fussed with feeding Emmie. The baby had cried on the way over: Shego had groaned during the five minute walk over because Emmie simply would not keep quiet when Kim gave her a bottle.

Apparently Emmie was picky about being fed, Shego had learned. The milk in the bottle Kim gave her had cooled down and the baby was refusing to drink any of it. Before she could even enter her apartment, Shego forced Kim to give her the bottle, lit her hand ablaze, and handed back the now hot bottle to the redhead. The baby was happy, the crying had stopped, and now Shego was assessing this peculiar situation of having her former foe over for dinner.

"Yeah, clean." In fact, it seemed almost sterile to Kim. There was a major lack of personal effects in the entire apartment: no pictures, no sign that Shego actually lived here. The only exception was a stack of magazines on the woman's coffee table.

"I like to keep the place clean, even if I don't get visitors," said Shego as she strained water from the spaghetti.

"Your brothers don't visit?"

Shego scoffed loudly. "They don't even know where I live."

"Oh."

Emmie cooed after finishing the bottle and was now demanding for Kim's attention. The redhead put the empty bottle aside and carried Emmie so that the baby's front was pressed against Kim.

"You don't keep in touch with them?"

"Doy. Why would I have to? I'm fine on my own. Besides, they're all goody-goody," replied Shego as she stirred the pasta sauce.

"You're not evil, Shego. Besides, you're reformed."

The older woman scoffed. Really, why did she invite Miss Goody Two-Shoes again?

"You don't know me, Kimmie."

"If you were evil," Kim said as she entered the kitchen with Emmie, "You'd have killed me all those years ago. Yet you didn't."

Shego out down the spatula she was using, and stared hard and long at Kim. The younger woman stared back, as if challenging Shego to strike first. The older woman shifted her gaze to the semi-conscious baby on Kim and snorted.

Returning to her sauce, Shego grumbled, "Sparring with you always made things challenging. And I like a good challenge."

Kim grinned. Emmie burped loudly, signalling to the redhead that it was time for a nap. She left the kitchen to attend the baby, unaware that a small blush had spread onto Shego's cheeks.

* * *

"Kim?"

"Hmm?"

"How are we going to explain to Emmie about us?"

The redhead rolled into her side and tried to see Shego's face in the dark. She wondered whether her - yes, Shego was now her girlfriend - girlfriend was uneasy about raising Emmie. The older woman seemed like a natural when it came to children, more so than Kim. Maybe it was because she had studied child development in college, Kim thought.

Kim chose her words carefully. "What do you want us to explain to her?"

"Well, she's going to be going to school and I'm sure as hell people are going to ask questions. It might get her thinking that us being together is not-"

"-Shego, you and I both know that _we_ raised her better than that."

Shego shifted to get a better look at Kim. While it was dark, the moonlight managed to illuminate Kim's olive eyes. The older woman saw that the redhead had a determined look on her face, as if nothing could change Emmie's opinion of them.

"I know," Shego finally said. "But I can't help but wonder when that day will come and how Emmie will ask us... and how we'll answer."

"She's not blind, Shego. She can see that we care about each other and that we care about her. That's all that matters."

"Yeah."

* * *

"They just don't get it."

"Give them some time, Kim. You sort of just dumped it on them."

"My mom had a pretty good idea what was going on between us..."

"Uh, Kimmie, that's because she sort of did walk in on us..."

"Augh! I just don't know. My dad isn't thrilled about this. He was saying mean things about you and I just lost it."

"Just give them time. They'll come around."

* * *

Knock knock.

"Kimmie-cub? It's me."

The sounds of a door being unlocked could be heard in the living room where Shego was playing with Emmie.

"Oh, hey Dad."

"I was in the neighbourhood, so I figured I'd drop by and see how you and Emmie were."

"Things are good."

"How's my favourite- What is she doing here?" The Possible patriarch pointed a threatening finger at Shego, who was making silly faces at Emmie.

"She lives in the area and stopped by for a visit."

"Kimmie, last I remember, wasn't she a criminal? Who was hired by Drew to steal and fight with you?"

"Dad, she's reformed, remember? Besides, she's good with kids."

"Kimmie, Kimmie, she's a criminal."

"You forgot the word 'reformed', Doc," said Shego as she scooped up Emmie on her back and proceeded to walk on all fours. The baby laughed as Shego crawled towards Kim.

The redhead picked up the baby and simply said to her father, "Dad, Shego's good, she's been a great help with Emmie."

James looked pointedly at Shego before excusing himself and his daughter out in the hall. "Kim, she can burn metal with her hands, what makes you think she's, uh, safe enough for the baby?"

"I'm pretty safe, Doc. I only burn things when I'm mad!" shouted Shego from the living room.

Flustered, James shook his head in Shego's direction and said in a serious tone, "Kim, I want you're reconsider this, uh, 'friendship' with Shego. She ought to be locked up."

"Dad! She's my friend!"

"Be careful who your friends are, Kimmie," was the last thing James said before he exited the house.

Emmie started to cry once the door closed, so Kim headed to the kitchen to warm up a bottle of milk.

"It's faster if you just let me do it," came Shego's voice from the kitchen doorway.

Kim tossed the bottle to the woman and watched as Shego lit her hand ablaze for five seconds. The older woman walked to Kim with the bottle, but consciously kept her distance from the redhead.

The bottle was warm to touch when Kim took it from Shego's hand. She squirted a little of the milk on her hand to test the temperature before giving the bottle to Emmie. She remained pensive as the baby drank.

"You're worried I might torch the place down."

It was not a question, but a statement. Shego had spoken those words softly, but Kim could hear the accusatory tone in her voice.

The redhead shook her head in disagreement. "I trust you," she found herself saying.

"But you don't trust me completely," Shego finished for her. She raised both hands in surrender. "I get it. I'm just a green freak that no one trusts with a rap sheet that's longer than a roll of toilet paper. I get it." She walked out of the kitchen.

"Shego!" Baby in hand, Kim ran out into the hall, but the front door was open and Shego was gone.

* * *

"She sure is fussy."

Olive eyes stared back.

"She's only fussy when she wants food."

They blinked, but continued staring at the woman who held her.

"Hey, Kim, you sure she's ok? She just keeps staring at me."

"Maybe she finds you fascinating."

"Har, har, very funny."

The eyes blinked again. Then a yawn. And she proceeded to put her thumb in her mouth when the strange woman shook her head and glared.

"You shouldn't glare at her. She'd just glare back."

The child decided that this stranger was interesting, so she continued to glare.

The electronic sounds of a camera shutter were heard.

It was the woman who broke eye contact first, causing the baby to squeal in delight. "Huh? What was that?"

"You both look like you're cross-eyed, staring at each other. I took a photo."

"How cute," replied the woman dryly. She gave the giggling baby a look. "All right, kiddo, here you go."

The child took the bottle hungrily and began drinking.

"You sure it's ok to feed her so many times in a day? She's going to end up being a fat baby."

"Even if she ends up being fat, she'll still be my baby, I'd not love her any less than I do now."

"You sound like every mother out there, Kimmie."

The redhead shrugged. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"When did you get to be so good with kids?"

Shego sat on the floor with Emmie between her legs. She ruffled the little munchkin's hair as she answered, "Raising my baby brothers... and I guess I did have some babysitting experience before the comet hit. Why?"

"You're just really good with Emmie, I noticed." The redhead shrugged. "She won't really let my parents hold her, and she squirms at my touch sometimes, so I'm a bit surprised she lets you."

The older woman shrugged. "No clue."

"She likes you though." Kim laughed as Emmie proceeded to wave her empty bottle around to let the adults know she was finished. "C'mere, you."

Emmie squealed and attempted to crawl to her mother before Shego scooped her up and handed her to the redhead.

"Hey! You ruined the fun."

"She's just going to end up crying if you let her do that for ten minutes."

"I know, but it's still fun to watch her." Kim patted the baby's back as Shego grabbed her coat. "You going already?"

Shego nodded. "Thanks for the meal."

"It's the least I could do since you helped move my boxes and invited me over for food."

Shego waved a hand nonchalantly. "Like you say, no big."

"Thanks, Shego."

"You better be a good little baby," cooed Shego as Emmie watched this stranger say bye bye. "Don't give Kimmie here hell, kiddo."

"Thanks again, Shego. I wouldn't have been able to move everything in yesterday."

"Doy."

* * *

"Mommy, do you believe in angels?" Emmie held onto Shego's hand tightly as they exited the hospital. Shego had held everything in when she spoke to the doctor about preparations and transferring Kim's body to the funeral home.

The Possibles had come by the hospital when it was too late and James had verbally berated Shego in front of all the visitors. The woman had remained apathetic to the words: they couldn't ever hurt her because she had never felt such pain of losing someone she loved - until now. Anne had taken Emmie aside for a moment because it was too traumatic for a child to deal with such anger coming from her grandfather.

Shego's behaviour garnered her a slap in the face before the man unashamedly broke down. It was only then did Anne let Emmie go; Anne was always so sympathetic, despite her silent disapproval of their relationship. James merely advocated his opinions more aggressively, as if trying to scare the woman away from his family.

She knew, deep down, that the rift will always exist, so she felt compelled to take Emmie away from this sterile place. The only emotions that are here, she thought as she stuck the keys into the car, are only those of grief. What a hell-hole.

Emmie had buckled herself in the back, but was still waiting for an answer.

Shego finally whispered, "Your mother was an angel. The best of them all."


	3. it's not fair

**&& it's not fair**

* * *

"Shego, come on, answer the door." Kim knocked impatiently again. Emmie was fast asleep in her stroller, but because Kim couldn't leave her on her own, she had brought the baby over to Shego's apartment. She was hoping Emmie wouldn't wake up from the knocking.

After knocking five times, Kim finally gave up. Maybe she was merely supposed to remain a former foe to the older woman. Maybe they weren't cut out to be friends because of their differences. She was about to push Emmie's stroller down the hall when Shego finally unlocked the door.

The woman said nothing, but let her in.

"Shego... I'm sorry. It's not that I don't trust you-"

"Cut the crap, Kim," said Shego as she closed the door. "Don't expect me to sympathise with you because you have a baby and you need help."

"What's that suppose to mean?!"

"You've been using your kid as a shield, expecting me to suddenly have a change of a heart and be a goody two-shoes like you."

"What on earth are you talking about!"

"What I'm talking about is that you should really learn to fight your battles." Shego lit up her hands and shifted into an offensive stance.

"Shego, I am not fighting you right here! It's your apartment! You're going to trash the place."

"Who cares?" growled Shego as she threw the first punch.

Kim gently pushed the stroller out of the way as she dodged Shego' attack.

"I thought we were friends!" shouted Kim as she ducked another blow.

"Friends don't hesitate when one of them asks for a honest opinion!" growled the woman with her hands ablaze.

"You're just angry because of how I answered your question?!" Kim rolled onto the floor and pushed the stroller further into the apartment. "I should be the one asking you questions! Why are settled in this quiet part of Middleton?"

"Can't I live in peace and quiet?" Shego aimed at Kim's head, which the redhead managed to duck just in time.

The older woman managed to grab Kim by the collar and raised a fist to her face when Emmie started crying again.

The two women stared at each other for a moment, Emmie's cries drowned out all other sounds, before Shego extinguished her hands and let Kim go to the stroller.

"Hey you," cooed Kim as she picked up Emmie. "Look who we're visiting." Emmie put on a goofy smile when she saw Shego and made a happy noise to her mother, indicating she wanted Shego to hold her.

Kim walked over with Emmie and, without any hesitation, passed her to Shego. Caught off-guard, Shego merely stared at Kim when the baby was thrust into her hands.

"Hey, what do you think you're- Ow!"

Emmie was tugging on Shego's hair, as if it was some stretchy material like her octopus toy in her crib.

Kim stifled a giggle as she watched the older woman struggle with Emmie.

"No, Emmie, my hair is not a toy-Ow!"

The baby cooed and giggled as she continued tugging on Shego's hair.

"Kim! Come on!" groaned Shego as Emmie grabbed another fistful of hair.

"Only if you say everything's ok between us," said Kim as she crossed her arms. "I trust you completely." She turned her head and looked to the side. "Enough to let you hold Emmie. Isn't that enough?"

"No, Emmie, no my hair isn't food- Ow!" The baby had grabbed another fistful of hair and was twisting it around. "All right, all right, we're good. Just get this munchkin away from my hair!"

Kim grinned and took Emmie from Shego. The baby didn't resist as she was pulled away, but continued babbling in her goofy language as Shego assessed the situation: her hair was now in knots and she was covered in baby saliva. Just wonderful, she thought, this is going to take me a while to undo.

Kim snorted in laughter at the sight as Emmie joined in with happy squeaks.

Shego groaned. "Your baby is a piece of work, Kimmie."

Kim put Emmie back into the stroller and said in an amused voice, "Shego defeated by a baby, who would've thought I see the day."

The older woman stuttered her retort. "It's y-your fault! Y-you brought her over!"

"I can't just leave her alone."

"Fine, whatever." After unlocking her front door, Shego crossed her arms and had her back turned to Kim. "Just go and leave me to fix my hair... Ugh, baby slime."

Kim's touch surprised the older woman. The redhead had placed a hand on Shego's arm.

"I'm sorry for the trouble tonight," the redhead said. "I just don't like the thought of you thinking I dislike you because of your past. Even though I'm a 'goody two-shoes', as you put it, I still give you the benefit of the doubt." Kim pushed the stroller out into the hall. "Good night, Shego."

Emmie babbled something that Shego didn't understand, but it garnered a laugh from Kim.

"Emmie says good night too."

Shego sighed and shrugged.

"Good night."

* * *

"So."

"So?"

"You said you adopted Emmie... But the resemblance is uncanny..."

"Emmie's birth mother was a redhead... And she, too, had olive eyes."

"_Was_? _Had_?"

Kim shook her head. They were seated in Kim's living room: much to Kim's surprise, Shego had come over again to help unpack and somewhat babysit Emmie.

"It's a long story."

"We have all the time in the world right now while Emmie is sleeping."

"Cassie was a friend of mine..." Kim sighed. "A stubborn friend. She was in an abusive relationship when I first met her. I had asked her to seek help, but she told me she got it under control."

"But I guess she didn't?" asked Shego.

Kim shook her head. "Her husband took things too far one night. When I found out, they could only save Emmie through Caesarean section."

"Oh."

Kim sniffled. "I could've done more... But I didn't."

"Don't let that eat you up, Kim. Whether we like it or not, things like this happen... Sometimes we're powerless to stop it, or we just can't stop it in time."

"I vowed to make things right, so I took Emmie in. It took a while, but here she is." Kim sniffled and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. "I just wish Cassie was here to see how Emmie has grown."

Shego grabbed the tissue box on the coffee table and handed it to Kim. She spoke quietly, "You know, I quit Team Go because of a mistake that cost the life of a civilian."

Kim blew her nose and looked at Shego. "You did?"

"Bank robbery, armed robbers, and probably my first time dealing with that sort of situation. Hego was being an ass as usual and had distracted me. And I guess everything spiralled downwards afterward." Shego shrugged.

"You can't blame yourself for what happened."

"I'm telling you the same thing, Kimmie."

Kim sighed and blew out her nose again. "All right."

"So what happened to her husband?"

"He'll be rotting in jail for the rest of his life," said Kim bitterly. "If I had things my way, he'd be-"

"Don't finish that thought," said Shego as she suddenly stood up. "It won't make you feel better."

Kim blinked.

"When you're cursed with powers you don't understand and can't control, you might just be able to make the dark thoughts true," said Shego cryptically. "And then you seek thrills as recompense."

The older woman was surprised she didn't sense Kim was behind her until she felt the redhead's arms around her. The redhead had hugged her from behind.

"You're a good person, Shego, don't you ever forget that."

Shego simply touched Kim's arm in acknowledgement and muttered, "I'll try not to."

* * *

"Hey, Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"Where's Auntie Shego today?"

"She had to go out and run some errands."

"Is she going to come back?"

Kim put down her newspaper and gave her daughter a confused look. "Yes, why?"

Curious green eyes met Kim's. "Why does she not live here? She comes over every day and sometimes we go to her house."

"Maybe you should ask her that when she comes back." Kim put up the paper again to cover the smile that formed on her face.

* * *

Ring. Ring.

"Hello?"

"Kimmie!"

"Hi Mom! How are you?"

"I'm good, just calling check up on you and Emmie. I've been tied up at the hospital so I couldn't drop by. Maybe next weekend?"

"Sure."

"Are you all moved in?"

"I'm still unpacking, but everything's been good. Emmie still wakes me in the middle of the night, but it's not so bad since I moved the crib in my room for now."

"Ok, that sounds good. Do you need any groceries or diapers?"

"No, I think I have enough."

"Your father told me he stopped by the other day."

"Yeah, he did."

"And...?"

"Mom, you know how it is with him sometimes."

"He did raise some valid concerns."

"Shego's ok, Mom. She's not evil. And she's my friend."

"Just be careful. Who knows what Drew is up to these days?"

"He's probably too busy with his business to care. Besides, it's been ten years since I last saw him."

"Just be careful, Kimmie."

"I will, but I don't see any point in it. Emmie is practically glued to Shego when she visits."

"Shego's been visiting you?"

"She figured I could use some help with unpacking... Moving furniture around is pretty hard by myself."

"Do you want me to send your brothers to help?"

"No, I think I've got it all in place thanks to Shego."

"Ok, honey."

There was a slight pause.

"Give my regards to Shego and a big kiss for Emmie."

"Will do."

"Talk to you soon."

"Love you, Mom."

* * *

"You're looking a bit pale, Kimmie."

"It's nothing..."

"You ok?"

"I think so..."

Thud.

"Kim?! Kim?!"

The redhead woke up to find herself in a hospital room. She saw the tired form of Shego slumped in her chair with Emmie on her lap. She tried to sit up but then noticed the tubes attached to her body. What was going on?

"Thank goodness," said Shego as she saw Kim struggle with sitting up. She offered a hand and slowly helped the redhead up. "I thought you weren't going to wake."

"What happened?" asked the redhead as she finally registered what had happened. She saw a Band-Aid on her arm - did she get blood drawn while unconscious?

"You fainted... And they had to do some tests."

"Oh."

Kim saw the solemn look on Shego's face. It was like she was debating whether or not she should tell Kim anything. The older woman looked down to the sleeping form of Emmie and bit her lip.

"How bad is it?"

"You have leukaemia."


	4. something worth a wish

**&& something worth a wish**

* * *

"I had fun tonight."

"Me too."

Shego had parked her convertible in Kim's driveway and the two women were awkwardly standing in the doorway. Kim was holding Emmie as she wondered what exactly was happening. During the course of the evening, both had shyly admitted their feelings to each other and were on the same page. But that, in itself, brought them a whole slew of problems.

Were they both ready for something like this? (Whatever _this_ may be.) Kim scrunched up her face in thought as she looked down to the sleeping form of her daughter. Would Shego accept the fact that if Emmie was part of-

"Kim." Shego placed both hands on the redhead's shoulders, effectively breaking her train of thought. "We'll play it slow. Don't think too hard on it."

Kim nodded. Should she kiss Shego good night? Or was it too early for such displays of aff-

Shego moved in first, but hovered slightly, as if silently asking the redhead if this was ok. Kim closed the gap without any hesitation.

What was supposed to be a romantic moment was ruined when Emmie cracked open her eyes and saw a curtain of ebony hair before her.

So she took a fistful and tugged.

* * *

"Hi Auntie Shego!"

The woman greeted the ever-growing child who ran toward her with a hug. "Hey, squirt. You eat breakfast yet?" Emmie nodded and followed Shego into the kitchen.

Kim had just finished washing the dishes and watched as Shego put down grocery bags on the kitchen counter. "Was it crowded this morning?"

Shego shook her head. "Nah, just your typical day at the grocer."

"Auntie Shego, I have a question!" said Emmie as she raised her hand.

Shego noted the amused expression on Kim's face as she left the kitchen, giving the two privacy.

"What's up, Emmie?"

"How come you don't live here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Mom and I come over, or you come over, but you don't live here with us."

"Do you want me to live here with you and your mom?"

The child's eyes lit up in delight. "Can you? Pretty please?"

Shego grinned. "I'll talk to your mom about it."

"Ok," smiled Emmie.

* * *

"Hi, 'Mommy'," said Kim as Shego entered the bedroom.

The older woman simply grinned. "That was unexpected."

"Why? Emmie loves you as much as she loves me."

"I just think motherhood was never in the cards for me."

"Because of your life choices?"

"No," said Shego as she climbed into bed. "The comet probably ruined my body... I don't think it would result in a genetically-normal kid if I wanted to bear a child."

"You don't know that," replied Kim as she touched Shego's hand.

"I wouldn't want to risk it anyway."

Kim nodded in understanding. Both women were sitting in bed with their backs to the head board. The redhead gently laid her head on Shego's shoulder before quietly asking, "Are you ok with this?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"You knew that being with me also included Emmie-"

"-It's not like I would've asked you to abandon her. I knew what I was getting myself into."

"Ok."

"Did you think I was going to bail because of Emmie?"

Kim looked away in embarrassment.

"Hey," Shego used a finger to gently turn Kim's face towards her. "That's understandable."

"It still makes me feel guilty about it."

"I wouldn't leave you because of Emmie. Hell, I'm having fun helping you raise her."

Kim smiled weakly, still feeling bad about the thoughts that had gone through her head.

"Princess, don't feel bad about it," said Shego as she gently brushed her lips onto Kim's forehead.

"Remember that time I doubted you and we had that fight in your living room?"

"Yeah, I was being stupid at the time."

"I promised myself that I shouldn't doubt you from then on... I broke that promise-"

"-You didn't. You just weren't sure about things and emotions clouded your thoughts."

"I doubted you - that, in itself, is bad."

"Don't worry about it." Shego puffed up her chest, as if pretending to be a knight in armour. "I'm here to stay."

"I know," said Kim as she kissed her girlfriend - no, Shego was something more than that now - her life partner on the lips.

* * *

"Owwww!"

"Emmie, no, stop that!"

The baby cooed and kept tugging.

"She really likes my hair-ow!" Shego scrunched up her face in pain and then blew a raspberry at Emmie.

The child let go, to Shego's relief, and giggled.

"I am SO sorry, Shego," said the redhead.

The older woman untangled her hair with her fingers and chuckled, "I really need to put my hair up when Emmie's awake."

"Are you ok?" Kim reached out to touch Shego's hair but then stopped mid-air. A thought had crossed her mind and she was about to pull back when Shego held onto her hand.

"I'm fine." Shego analysed the look on Kim's face - a mixture of relief and fear - before asking, "Are you?"

Kim let go of the breath she was holding and nodded. She squeezed Shego's hand gently in response.

"Ok," murmured her companion. It's nice, Shego thought, to hold Kim's hand.

The baby's giggling suddenly reminded them of where they were.

"Um, I guess I should go..."

"A-are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, she didn't tug that hard enough to rip out my hair... She's got quite the grip."

"Ok... Well... Good night, Shego."

Kim acted without thinking and kissed the woman on the cheek. When she pulled away and felt her own cheeks burning, Shego had turned a darker shade of green.

"Good night, Kimmie. You too, you little hair-playing munchkin."

* * *

Shego stretched her legs in the park. It was 5 AM, but she felt like going for a morning run after the previous night's events. She had ended up lying awake in bed, wondering why she had made the first punch at Kim. It wasn't as if Kim had done something wrong, right? Kim was trying to defend her in front of her father, but he had remained prejudiced over the years that had passed. Whatever happened when Kim was a teenager with Drew was ten years ago - don't people deserve second chances?

The problem is, Shego thought, that I will never lead a normal life again. Never.

She finished her leg stretches and did a few jumping jacks.

Nothing like getting the blood pumping through the veins, she thought.

It was still dark outside, but she had decided that a morning run would clear her mind of these thoughts that were bothering her - was it guilt? She did feel bad for trying to attack Kim: she noted that the redhead had simply dodged her blows, but did nothing to fight back. Maybe Kim did trust her completely.

It wasn't because of the baby that Shego didn't end up hitting her... was it? Was she losing her touch? No, wait, she wasn't in that game anymore, so why did she act that way? Did Kim's trust mean all that much to her?

Argh, I need to stop thinking about this, she thought.

She popped in her ear buds and put on her workout playlist. A morning run will clear everything up.

She ran around the park three times until she saw the glows of the sun brightening her surroundings. She paused her playlist, pulled out her headphones, and stood still to watch the sight.

Maybe I should give this friendship with Kim another chance, she thought. But first, I have to apologise.

* * *

"So it's all not that difficult, just fix her some baby food and she should stop crying about it. Unless she's started teething, then that's why."

"Ok, thanks, Mom. I'll see what I can do about it."

Kim put her keys on the door side table. "Well, here we are... It looks different than what you saw when you came to help me pick a place." She picked up the baby carrycot where Emmie was tucked inside and was fast asleep.

"Very nice decor, Kim." Anne took a good look around. "I'm surprised it's not a toy battlefield here."

"Oh, yeah, we cleaned it up last night since you told me you were visiting."

"_We_?" asked the older redhead as she watched her daughter gently lift the sleeping baby from the basket.

"Uh, Shego came by to help with Emmie, so..." she said as she went up the stairs to Emmie's room. Anne followed and noted that, while her granddaughter's room was covered with stuffed toys, her daughter's room was a disaster zone. Clothes were strewn everywhere and boxes were not unpacked.

"...So...?" prompted Anne.

"She helped me with clean-up."

"You're spending an awful lot of time with her."

Kim shrugged as she put Emmie in her crib and tucked her in. "We're just hanging out while I look after Emmie. It's no big."

"Kim, you said she comes over to help with Emmie. What does that entail?"

"Um, she helps with keeping Emmie entertained when I'm trying to do laundry and stuff... And she helps cook."

"I'm not sure if you're just making her help you look after Emmie, Kim. If you need me to help, I can take fewer shifts at the hospital."

"No, it's ok, Mom. I've got it under control."

"Does Shego work?"

Kim shook her head. "No, she doesn't... Well, I mean, she can but she chooses not to, I think."

"Is this because of what the comet has done to her?"

Kim knew that her mother was referring to Shego's skin colour, but she honestly doubted that was the case. It was probably more because Shego was still known as a former criminal.

"No... I think she's just settled well for the next little while, that's all."

"All the money that she-"

"-I don't know, we don't talk about this sort of stuff." Kim took Mister Tibbles, Emmie's teddy bear from the floor and placed it beside the sleeping redhead.

"So what do you talk about?"

Kim shrugged. "Unimportant things like what we've been doing in the past ten years and stuff like that."

Anne sighed. "Kimmie, you know your father is worried about you. And frankly, I am too. You barely know a thing about Shego yet you're letting her help you take care of your baby."

"Does it really matter what her past has done to her? It wouldn't affect Emmie in either way - besides, she has a degree in child development... She understands children probably more than me... So she's been a big help."

"All right, as long as you think it's ok."

Kim said nothing in response. What was with both her parents? Why had they become so judgemental about her new friend?

* * *

They shuffled their way into the bedroom. They were still in lip lock when Kim tripped and landed on her back on the bed.

"Well, now, this is a compromising position," smirked Shego as she peered at Kim.

The redhead grinned. "Is it really?" She took advantage of the moment and managed to roll them both over, reversing their positions.

"You know," said Shego as she noted the desire in Kim's eyes, "We should be glad the baby's asleep. You're not a screamer, are you?"

Kim blinked and then stared hard at Shego. She felt her face burn - she was blushing, no doubt.

"Oh, Kimmie, you're such a prude," laughed Shego as she pecked the redhead on the cheek.

"I don't scream! I think...?"

Shego reversed their positions again and simply grinned. "We'll see about that." She saw Kim avert her eyes uncomfortably and climbed off the redhead. "What's wrong? Are we... going too fast?"

The redhead sat up and shook her head. "I..." She stuttered. "I've actually never done it with a woman..."

"Oh." Shego put an arm around Kim. "Don't worry... If you're not ready, then-"

"-I am."

"Just tell me if you want to stop and I will."

"Ok." The redhead leaned in to kiss Shego on the lips.

The older woman's hands roamed over the redhead's form and eventually found their way under Kim's shirt. She was about to get the shirt off when she heard the baby crying.

Kim broke the kiss and gave Shego an apologetic look that was returned with a shrug. She got out of bed and headed to the next room.

Gosh, Emmie, you have the worst timing, thought Shego as she ran a hand through her hair.

* * *

"Everything'll be fine."

"How can you say that?"

"Anything's possible for a Possible."

"..."

"Shego, please stop worrying."

"I can't help it."

"I know you care... It's no big. We'll be fine."

"I-I- don't want to lose you-"

"-You won't. I'll fight it. All of it. For you and for Emmie."

* * *

"So, Shego, you've been coming over here a lot to help Kim babysit."

"Mom..."

The ebony-haired woman put down her coffee and looked at Anne. "I've got time to kill."

"Apparently a lot of it," murmured the older Possible.

Anne had stopped by again this morning to spend some time with her grandchild but was surprised that Shego had also come over for breakfast.

"Being a reformed criminal has apparently limited the number of things I could do," said Shego with a shrug. "You can have Global Justice to thank for that."

"Oh?" asked Kim. "What do you mean?"

"You don't think they've got me monitored? I know that they have people on the look-out for me in case I ever end up doing something," she paused to make air-quotation marks, "_evil_ again."

"I didn't realise-"

"-it's nothing. Doctor Director probably knows I hang out here." Shego shrugged. "You do realise she also has you monitored too?"

Anne and Kim shared an uneasy look.

"I thought the agreement was that they leave you be, Kimmie."

"Me too, mom... Shego, how long have you known?"

"You should ask your Nerdlinger. Doesn't he tell you about stuff like this?"

"Wade stayed on to help Global Justice... I actually haven't heard from him since my last mission."

"Which was shortly before you got married," said Anne. "Tell me, Shego, how did you come across this information?"

"I wasn't a thief - uh, now an _ex_-thief," the woman added with extra emphasis for the doctor, "- for nothing. I'm sufficient with simple hacking."

"I doubt you could call hacking Global Justice's system simple," replied the brain surgeon.

Shego shrugged. "I'm reformed now and didn't do anything." She winked.

Anne fed Emmie some applesauce. "Is that how you came across Kimmie's address? By hacking into a Global Justice database? Very few people know where Kim is right now. If what you say is true, then you could've come across this information while perusing their system."

"Mom! You shouldn't be so doubtful of Shego's intentions!"

"It's ok, Kim. I understand why your parents are skeptical of me." Shego shook her head. "I didn't know Kim moved here until I ran into her in the park." She looked Anne in the eye, silently conveying that it was the truth.

The older redhead blinked once in acknowledgement and remained silent as she continued feeding Emmie. Oblivious to the tension in the room, the baby happily ate her applesauce as it was fed to her.

* * *

"Thousands of people have shown up to this memorial and we'll now go live to Bob who is currently on the scene. Bob, tell us what it's like."

The screen flickers and a middle-aged reporter stared back. He is dressed in a simple black suit, no doubt as a sign of respect, as he replies.

"Hi Barbara, I'm here at the memorial and we have many people here whose lives have been touched by the former teen hero, Kim Possible. With me now is Emilio Sanchez. Tell me about how Kim helped you."

The camera pans over to a burly looking man in his late forties. He dabs his eyes with a handkerchief and sniffles loudly. "I called her once to help me save my crops from a grasshopper infestation. Miss Possible was opposed to me killing them with pesticide, and had managed to find an environmentally friendly way of moving them to an empty adjoining field and then later to a conservatory. I'm truly grateful for her help and offer my condolences to her family."

"Thank you, Emilio, for sharing this story," says the reporter. The camera pans back to him. In the background, mourners in black place flowers at the grave. "I understand that Ron Stoppable also showed up at this service earlier today. He didn't give any interviews, but we do have a photo that a viewer submitted-"

The screen fades to black as the TV is turned off.

* * *

Emmie watched the two adults sit down on the couch. She was playing with her teddy on the floor. The woman she knew as her mother was fidgeting and the other woman appeared to be shifting her eyes about in the room.

This lady was always nice to her. When she cried, the lady was around to pick her up, tickle her, and make silly faces at her.

Emmie crawled toward this lady and cooed. On cue, the lady picked her up and made silly noises. Her mother smiled at her, as if silently thanking her for being the distraction.

"Eeeeee."

Her mother said something in surprise and the lady tilted her head.

"Eeeeeeguuu."

Emmie frowned. Why was it hard to express herself? She tried again.

"Eeeeegoo."

The lady blinked and then looked at her mother.

She saw her mother's lips move again and heard an indiscernible sound she just couldn't make out. So she repeated herself again.

"Eeeeegoo!"


	5. i'm carrying your line

**&& i'm carrying your line**

* * *

Shego cracked open her eyes as sunlight began spilling through the window. She had slept over at Kim's and they had, well, taken a bigger step in their relationship the night before.

She turned her head and watched the redhead sleep. For someone who had no experience with dating women, Kim had definitely surprised Shego with her ability to push all the right buttons in bed, eliciting sounds from the older woman that she did not know she could make.

She brushed a stray strand of hair from Kim's face. Despite being her junior by a few years, Shego felt that the redhead was mature for her age. Maybe it was also because of the maternal aspect - how many exceptionally talented twenty nine year-olds were ready to settle down? Apparently not the Buffoon, but Kim had traded her hero days for a stable life that burned up in flames when rumours of the Buffoon's infidelity surfaced.

He never deserved her, Shego thought as she watched Kim's chest rise and fall with every breath. But who's to say I deserve her too? I did end up breaking her heart over the Eric incident. I was sure she hated me forever for that... But, somehow we all ended up ok and here we are.

Shego sat up with her knees to her chest. What if she has second thoughts about this? What if she realises I'm not good enou- Stop. Stop it. She said to leave the past behind us, but what if she realised she needs someone more... What if Emmie needs a... Dad?

* * *

"If I could have a word with you in private?" asked Anne to Shego.

"Sure."

Kim had left the kitchen with Emmie to clean up the mess made on the baby's clothes and to change the baby into fresh diapers. The two other women were left alone, so Shego proceeded to follow Anne unto the backyard patio.

"What are your intentions with my daughter?"

The question caught Shego off-guard. She had only been hanging at Kim's for a few months to help babysit Emmie, but nothing of the sort had crossed her mind.

"I'm not sure what you mean, Anne."

"What I mean is that my husband and I are concerned about your continued presence in Kim's life. You are not working for Drew again, are you?"

"No, I am not." Shego crossed her arms in defiance. "Why does it matter if I hang out here? You honestly think I'm trying to get Kim to do bad things? Please, that was always Drew's ideas."

"James and I are concerned that you might influence Kimmie to do things she might not want to... Or act on impulse. You do understand that Kimmie has been emotionally unstable since her divorce? She hides it well." A look of concern flashed on Anne's face.

"I never noticed anything of the sort." Shego shrugged. "This might seem to be a bold observation, but Kim appears to be happy here with Emmie. I haven't seen her lose her temper or do anything rash. Maybe you've got it wrong, doc."

"I see." Anne stared at Shego's face for a moment, as if looking for anything that might give away Shego's honesty. The ebony-haired woman simply stared back and maintained a neutral look on her face. Anne nodded in acknowledgement. "I cannot stop you from coming over, but take into consideration Kim needs to stand on her two feet while she recovers from the divorce."

"She also needs help raising Emmie."

"She needs to find her strength again. Don't make yourself a crutch for her to lean on," was what Anne said before disappearing back into the house.

What the hell did that even mean?

* * *

"Did she just..."

"She totally said her first word!"

"But.. But..."

"And it's your name!"

Shego stared at Emmie. Green eyes stared back.

"Eeeegooo!" laughed the baby.

"Really? Really? Try saying 'Kim', Emmie," said Shego as she stared at the baby.

"Eeeegoooo!"

Shego groaned and slouched on the couch.

"Hey, it's not a bad thing!" said Kim.

"Yeah, but it's my name and imagine the hell your parents will give me for that."

"I don't see how it's any of their business how Emmie came up with her first word..."

"Your parents hate that I'm around."

Kim turned her head to hide her face and mumbled, "I want you around... They can't do anything about it."

The redhead felt a hand on her shoulder. Shego wasn't sure what she could say because she was also blushing at Kim's remark.

* * *

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Shego blinked. She was so engrossed in her own thoughts that she did not even realise that Kim woke up.

"It's nothing."

"It can't be nothing. You looked like your dog just died or something," said the redhead as she sat up. "You're thinking about... us, right?"

"This path will lead us nowhere, Kim. You should know that."

"That doesn't stop me from feeling the things I feel about you."

Shego looked away from Kim. "Think of what will happen when everyone knows. Your life away from the media will cease to exist. You'll be thrust into the spotlight again and Emmie will not have a normal life-"

Kim took Shego's hands. "Does it matter what other people think? What Emmie thinks is normal is different than what we think of normal since we've both grown up with," Kim paused and mumbled. "A dad."

"But Emmie doesn't have one."

"Does it matter to her if she doesn't? I don't think so. Hell, it doesn't even matter to me anymore." When the redhead noticed that the older woman still remained doubtful, she added, "The one thing you've taught me ever since we ran into each other at the park was that I should live a life that I find fulfilling and rewarding, regardless of what my parents and the rest of the world think. And that life includes you in it."

"I just don't want you to regret-"

"-No regrets. Ever. Life gives you lessons, and I've learned to accept everything and not regret any of my choices."

Shego nodded and smiled at the redhead. Maybe this could work out.

* * *

She couldn't understand it. Every time she saw her, she felt these feelings that had never really surfaced before.

She smiled as she watched Emmie clap her hands in the sandbox. The woman sitting next to the toddler laughed as Emmie attempted to squish a sand pie.

If someone had told her that she would be friends with Shego in the future, she would've laughed it off. What would a thief and a teen hero have in common?

But, no, she felt something there. Even during that time when Shego turned good, she felt a connection. Was it because they had similar interests? Or was it the fact that Shego was so much more approachable as Miss Go?

She wasn't weirded out by this connection, no. Shego wasn't that much older than her - maybe six years older than her tops? It was just that she never felt this way with Josh, Eric, and Ron. Frankly, she thought, her relationship with Ron had reverted back to a brother-sister one shortly after they started dating, but when he proposed after they both retired from Global Justice, she couldn't help but say yes.

It wasn't that she wanted to settle for this sort of life: she merely took the easiest route for "happiness." In college, life was no different than it was in high school. She still took on missions and managed to get good grades while trying to help Ron with his own school work. And when they were done, Global Justice had enlisted them to help out with their global outreach programs - another offer Kim could not refuse.

But something changed in her after a few years at Global Justice. She had wondered whether it was because she was worn out with this sort of life, or everything seemed mundane to her. Ron's proposal did catch her off-guard, but she took and ran with it. Her childhood best friend had turned into a bit of a hunk after college and had grown balls (or a few) to become more confident in everything he did. So confident that Kim found him in bed with someone else. Maybe that was the last straw. Maybe it was being around Ron for so long made her realize how she carved out a path of least resistance: she was just going through the motions and living an unfulfilling life. Sure, the missions were fulfilling and even rewarding, but they still left her feeling empty.

It was when she met Cassie that she realised that she shouldn't feel sorry for herself. She had a family that cared about her and a life that most people envied. Cassie was trapped in an unhappy marriage and had nowhere to go if she did want to up and leave. Despite her frequent attempts to help the young woman, Cassie had brushed off her offers and simply stated that "life is no fun without any challenges." When she found out that Cassie's husband had attacked her friend in a drunken rage, she wondered what she was living for if she couldn't even save her friend. But she realised she could save the baby from a similar fate.

Ron had made his intentions clear one night when he indicated he didn't want children. Of course, that was a given, she thought, he was as irresponsible as they came. She silently watched as Shego continued playing with Emmie; they were building a sand castle now and she noted how relaxed the older woman looked. It was as if she was a natural with babysitting, changing diapers, keeping Emmie entertained... it was a strange sort of scene to watch for those who knew about Shego's past and "abilities", but to an ordinary bystander, it merely looked like a mother was playing with her child in a sandbox.

Many a night, she had wondered the same thing: was it a good idea that she adopted Emmie? With her biological father incarcerated, Emmie would grow up never knowing what kind of woman her birth mother was. Could she replace Cassie? Could she be a mother? Was she even ready to be a mother?

The first week with the baby was hell for her. She knew it would be, but she didn't expect it to be that bad. Thankfully, there was a veteran babysitter around to help, but as the divorce trial drew to a close, she knew she had to get away from the media. It wasn't right to have all these people snoop around. All she wanted was for Emmie to live a normal life - but hey, how was she to know what 'normal' meant? Her own life was anything but normal. The adoption agency had signed a confidentiality agreement, along with the hospital, so she could fend off any nosy reporters who came her way. Yet, only her immediate family and, much to her dismay, Ron knew about the baby. So how did Shego know? Didn't she ask her whether it was Ron's child when they ran into each other in the park?

She watched Emmie as she cooed and laughed while Shego made a make-shift sandcastle. The older woman laughed as Emmie crawled at the sandcastle, causing it to topple over. The baby was picked up and dusted off as Shego noted the time.

She wondered. If she asked about it, how would Shego react? Would the woman think she didn't trust her again? Or should she just leave it be? Maybe some things weren't meant to be discussed... like her growing feelings for someone she once called an enemy.

* * *

It was a week after 'the incident' when she found herself on Kim's porch. Apologising was never fun, she thought. Especially when it's to someone who was once an... Enemy?

Shego paused mid-knock. What exactly was Kim - before and now? She was Drakken's enemy, at most, but not Shego's.

I was merely hired help, she thought.

'Sparring partner' would be incorrect because they only fought when Kim busted in on their plans. They weren't exactly friends back then - she wasn't sure about now though.

Swallowing her pride, she knocked. Thrice.

She heard the redhead yell out "One second!" and heard feet shuffling to the door. When the door flung open, she could not help but laugh.

"What's so funny, Shego?" asked the redhead. Kim was wearing an apron and appeared to have batter stains down her front. Her hair was tied back, but it seems like she was covered in flour - or had really bad dandruff.

"Did World War III happen in your kitchen?" chortled Shego.

Kim crossed her arms. "I was trying to make pancakes."

"You must suck at cooking, Kimmie."

Kim remained in her offensive position. "What are you doing here? Aren't you angry at me or something?"

Shego visibly tensed and then cleared her throat. "I, uh, came to, uh, apologise for my behaviour the other day."

Kim raised an eyebrow. "You sure like delaying your apologies. You're late by a week."

"Better a week than a month," mumbled Shego.

"What was that supposed to mean?"

"I was trying to crack a joke... Y'know, how you miss your period when you're pregn- oh, forget about it!" Shego turned to leave when Kim's hand - covered in batter, no doubt - reached out to pull her back.

"Hey, it's ok. I accept your apology."

"Kim."

"Hmm?"

"Get your batter-covered hand off my shirt! I can't take this to the dry cleaners!"

"Oops." The redhead let go and wiped her hand in her apron. "Uh, sorry...?"

Shego waved it off.

Kim suddenly grinned at a thought.

Noticing the smug look on the redhead's face, Shego raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Emmie!" Kim yelled. "Auntie Shego is here to visit you!"

The older woman heard the baby cooing from the kitchen and stared at the redhead in response.

"Have you had breakfast?" asked Kim.

"No, but I get the feeling I'm about to eat breakfast in your messy kitchen."

"C'mon! Keep an eye on Emmie for me, please? She's been fussy all morning and I haven't been able to finish the panca- Crap! I left one of them on the griddle!" Kim ran off to the kitchen, leaving Shego to shake her head in amusement as she walked in and closed the front door.

* * *

"Penny for your thoughts?" asked Shego as she sat down on the bench with Emmie on her lap. The baby looked from her mother to Shego and back again.

"Just wondering whether I did the right thing."

Emmie laughed.

Shego replied, "I think that's her way of saying yes. Why the doubt?"

"I'm twenty-nine, Shego. I don't think I've lived out most of my life because of missions and things like getting married too young." Kim laughed. "You must find this funny. Former teen hero who used to say anything is possible can't even figure out her life."

Emmie cooed as Kim handed her a pacifier.

"It's a valid concern, yes, but you shouldn't forget you have been to all sorts of places and helped many people. That counts for something." Shego watched as Emmie put the pacifier in her mouth. "I don't think you made the wrong choice. You went with your gut instinct and it's gotten you this far. Not just with Emmie, but I mean your overall life choices. You could've gone rogue if you wanted since you could, but you didn't. You stuck with Global Justice for a while to continue doing more good."

"That was always _expected_ of me."

"So your doubts are because you wanting to live up to some other person's expectations?"

The redhead nodded. "What are your expectations of me?"

Shego was slightly taken back by the question. "If I answer that, you'd just put more pressure on yourself. If I don't answer, you'll think I have expectations and you'll continue to measure yourself to ideals that might not reflect your own."

"I guess you understand how I feel then."

Shego shook her head. "I _know_ what it feels like." She looked at the baby on her lap and ruffled the little munchkin's hair. "You forget I once wore your shoes."

"How did you deal with it?"

"I didn't. I lived a life based on impulsive desires... And this is where I am." Shego gestured at herself, baby included, and chuckled. "Kimmie, you live a life you want and you live it your way. You wanted Emmie in your life and here she is, don't doubt yourself about it." She faced Emmie towards her. "You love your mommy, don't you?" she asked in a singsong voice.

Emmie stopped sucking on the pacifier and pulled it out. She waved it around and babbled happily at the two women, making them laugh.

* * *

"If this is your way of scaring me, it's not going to work."

"Who said anything about scaring anyone?" said the woman seated in the chair behind the office desk. She was casually filing her nails when the one-eyed beast walked in.

Betty Director flipped on the lights. Shego kept a smug look on her face as she continued filing her nails.

"What do you want, Shego?"

"I understand Global Justice has a medical research team?"

"What about it?" asked Betty as she closed the door. She wasn't sure how Shego managed to get into the impenetrable GJ headquarters, but she wouldn't put it past the former thief of knowing the quickest escape route if she activated the alarm.

"You know what I'm about to ask. I might even be bold enough to say that they've started researching already."

"Kim was our best agent, so yes, I sent in a team to see if we can help her in any way."

"Good. I expect a copy of the reports too," said Shego as she got up from the chair. Before she could go, Betty stopped her with one phrase.

"Kim is going to be all right, Shego."

The woman nodded at Betty in appreciation before disappearing through the air vent in the office.

* * *

"Hey Mommy, can I ask you something?"

Shego put down her paper and signalled for Emmie to continue.

"How come you can play with fire? It seen like it doesn't hurt you. But in school, they say it's a bad thing."

"I'm a bit special," replied Shego. She lit up one finger. "See, it won't hurt me if I do this." She took her other hand and ran it through the flames. "But I can make it hurt if I did this." She took a napkin from the counter and let it burn.

"Cool!" Emmie bounced from her chair. "You're kind of like a super hero! But you can shoot fire!"

Shego snuffed out her finger. "It's a long story but your mom was also a hero. She used to save people from bad guys."

"I want to be like Mom and Mommy when I grow up!" The child gave Shego a toothy grin.

"If you want to be like Mom and me, you should finish your homework." Shego pointed at the math exercise book on the table.

"Aw..."

"If you finish it, I think we'll have pancakes for breakfast tomorrow."

"Yay!"

* * *

"Wow."

"I mean, wooooooooooow."

"Oh, just be quiet, Shego." Kim had just put out the burning pancake on the griddle. The house smelled like burnt batter and Shego had wrinkled her nose in response.

"It seriously looks like a battle ground here. Honestly, what did you do? You've got batter on the floor, on Emmie, and even in your hair."

"The mixer. It was the mixer's fault!"

"You put it on the 'high' setting, didn't you? You don't even need to use it for pancakes!"

"Bah, just stop it, Shego."

Shego put up her hands in surrender. "You're the one asking me for help, remember that."

Kim sighed. "All right, tease away, but can you help out?"

Shego crossed her arms. Not only did the redhead got her shirt dirty, now she was asking for help. "What do you want me to do?"

"Uhhh, flip the pancakes? I have the batter mixed."

Shego raised an eyebrow.

"I can't flip them well... They either clump up on the griddle or-"

"Show me your batter."

Kim handed the woman a bowl. Shego took a spoon and scooped out a little. "This is too thick," she said as she watched the batter slowly run off the spoon. "It's why you're getting clumps... Or you're just leaving them on the griddle for too long."

"Oh."

"Kimmie, you must've sucked at home ec."

"Don't remind me... I've never failed anything before and that course was just frustrating."

"I'm going to ignore that." Shego stored the batter a bit. "These are just plain?"

Kim nodded as she wiped Emmie's face with a washcloth.

"Do you have any fruit?"

"I think I have some bananas."

"Can you slice them up without blowing up your kitchen?"

"Ha ha. Very funny." Kim fetched the bananas and a cutting knife from the knife block as Emmie watched the two women 'cook.'

"Here you go," said the redhead as she passed Shego a bowl of banana slices.

"Thanks." Shego had rummaged through Kim's cupboard and had made homemade syrup while the redhead was preoccupied with the bananas. She took the bowl and dumped the contents into the batter.

"Banana pancakes chez Shego, coming right up." She gave Kim a once-over and shook her head at the mess. "I don't even want to know what happens when you try to make dinner and your appliances start going crazy."

"I guess I should change... But after I've cleaned up the kitchen."

Shego nodded as she flipped a pancake. Emmie laughed at the sight and clapped her hands.

"She gets amused easily," noted Shego as she placed a stack of pancakes on a plate.

Kim shrugged. "She laughs at a lot of things." She took the plate offered by the older woman and sat down at the table with Emmie. When Shego was done, the older woman also brought over the syrup.

"Well, dig in, I guess."

"Thsiz berry gwood."

"Kim, you're going to have to not talk with your mouth full. What happened to Little Miss Priss? Tch," scoffed Shego as she elegantly cut her pancakes into pieces. Emmie was seated in her high chair in between the two women and was eying the plate of pancakes.

Much to her surprise, Kim watched as Shego took a small piece of pancake with her fingers, blew on it a little and dipped it in syrup. She offered it to Emmie who merely devoured the piece and cooed for more.

"You're not-"

"Hmm?" asked Shego as she fed another piece to Emmie.

"I just noticed. You don't wear your gloves."

"Oh. That was a fashion thing that went with the costume."

Kim noted scars on the woman's hands, but said nothing. She continued eating in silence as Shego continued feeding Emmie small pancake and banana pieces.


	6. every day's a gift & we'll be all right

**&& every day's a gift and we'll be all right**

* * *

Kim watched as Shego ruffled Emmie's hair. The redhead was surprised by how at ease Shego seemed when it came to taking care of Emmie. The older woman had made an effort earlier to brush off the sand on the baby's clothes and was now trying to get sand out of Emmie's hair.

As Kim watched, she noticed Shego's hands again. The scars were old but still visible; it resembled burn patterns found on arson victims that Kim once rescued when she was still part of Global Justice.

"Kim, it's rude to stare."

The redhead blinked. Shego was giving her an amused look as she continued brushing out Emmie's hair. The baby had a fiery mane like her mother and it was starting to grow out.

"Sorry," she replied sheepishly.

"You're wondering about the scars, aren't you? It's not the first time I caught you staring," said the older woman.

"They remind me of burn patterns..."

"They are the result of me burning my hands, yes." Shego patted Emmie's head and handed the child back to Kim. "It's difficult to control powers you don't understand. When the comet hit, discipline and training were needed for me to harness these." She lit up her hands.

Kim watched as the green flames danced on Shego's hands. Emmie squealed in delight and tried to touch them but Shego snuffed out her hands before the baby could touch her.

"Does it hurt when you use your powers?" asked the redhead.

The older woman shook her head. "No, not anymore."

Kim nodded in understanding. Shego did not seem like she wanted to talk about the topic, so Kim awkwardly cleared her throat and began putting Emmie back in her stroller.

"You know it's ok to ask me questions," mumbled Shego. "We're... friends, right?"

Kim stopped strapping Emmie in and turned to look at the older woman. The look on Shego's face was a mix of fear (of rejection) and hope.

Kim smiled back. "Yeah, we're friends."

* * *

They held hands as they walked through the park. Both weren't sure whether they had just gone out on a date, but when Anne offered to take Emmie out for a weekend, Kim had called Shego up to go see a movie.

It wasn't a particularly boring movie, but it wasn't interesting either. Kim was fixated in her seat, unsure of all the emotions and thoughts going through her head.

There was a scene where the hero swooped down to save the damsel in distress: Kim merely stared at Shego's hand that was lying on the hand rest. To hold, or not to hold, that was the sole question going through her head.

When the movie had ended, they had awkwardly found their way to a nearby diner. Kim had been accustomed to hiding her face and hair with an extra large baseball cap whenever she left the house. She knew this couldn't go on for long, but she still chose to wear a disguise with Shego.

The older woman had also opted for a disguise. She had mentioned to Kim that discharging copious amounts of plasma would make her look pale but the green tint on her skin would be less noticeable. Shego, too, opted for a baseball cap to cover her face.

It's like we're dating in secret, Kim mused.

"What's so amusing, Kimmie?" asked Shego as they walked through the park.

"We're going to such great lengths to disguise ourselves."

"It's necessary."

"I know, but we can't even have a moment of privacy being ourselves. Unless we're at home."

"And what moment of privacy are we referring to?" smirked Shego.

Kim blushed. "I just meant that we can't really have a personal conversation when we're outside."

Shego shrugged. She was wondering how she ended up holding hands with Kim. After they made their way to the diner, they ate in silence and were awkwardly avoiding each other's gaze. Then, they ended up at the park and hands just seemed to naturally join together.

She knew something had changed in her. What she thought was a life of solitude turned into something more that day in the park. And then there was the incident with the almost-kiss that was nicely interrupted by Emmie. And now Emmie was staying with the Possibles' at their cottage, so they were left alone. What would the remainder of their day entail?

Kim tugged on her hand. The redhead was pointing at the spot in front of them and beckoned her to sit. She sat with her legs crossed and watched the orange sky slowly change into a purple colour. They sat like this for a while until Kim broke the silence.

"I have all these thoughts going through my head right now, but I can't make any sense out of them."

"I don't think it's supposed to make sense."

"You have them too."

"Doy."

Kim remained silent as they got up and started walking along the path laid out in the park.

It was Shego who spoke next and startled Kim with her question.

"What do you see in someone like me?"

Kim looked at Shego's face. The woman had a blank expression on her face, as if trying to mask her fear or expectation of the redhead's answer.

They had reached one of the park benches and Shego sat. Kim followed suit and sat down, but made sure to leave a space between them. She wasn't sure what she'd do if she closed the gap. Shego looked at the redhead again.

Kim played with her hands. She knew Shego wanted an honest answer, but she didn't know how to phrase her response. The older woman noticed the fidgeting and placed her hands over Kim's, a silent gesture of comfort for the redhead.

"I see strength... Stability and someone who'd remain loyal to their feelings as time permits."

Shego snorted. "You sound like an instruction manual, Princess."

"I was trying to phrase it eloquently for you," the redhead huffed.

"Even if I was a villain-"

"The keyword, Shego, is '_was'_. The past is the past. Didn't you tell me not to bring up what happened with-"

"I get it. All right. But why? Why do you see good in someone like me?" Shego had let go of Kim's hands and was staring at her own. "Even when I'm such a ... freak." She lit up her hands in emphasis.

Kim didn't hesitate when she placed her hands on top of Shego's. The flames danced across her fingers as she chose her words carefully. "You are not a freak, Shego. You are a very capable woman with a gift."

Shego snuffed out her hands but let Kim continue to hold them. "Sure, a gift to burn things," she replied sarcastically.

The redhead chose to ignore the comment. She continued, "A gift to light a spark in my heart that I thought I'd lost. A spark, if nurtured and allowed to grow, that could turn into something great."

The older woman stared at Kim. The redhead stared back and held her gaze. Shego did not break eye contact as she shifted her body to face Kim.

"A spark, eh?" was all she could muster before their mouths simultaneously moved toward each other.

* * *

"Eeeeeegooo!" squealed Emmie as she saw the woman enter the house. The toddler was now able to walk a few steps on her own before toppling over. She wriggled herself free from her mother's grip and slowly walked towards Shego.

Noting the amused look on Kim's face, Shego kneeled down and spread out her arms as Emmie shuffled her way over.

"C'mon, munchkin, you can do it," murmured Shego. She had kneeled about three feet from the toddler and watched Emmie topple two-thirds of the way over.

Emmie shrieked in disappointment but then crawled her way into Shego's arms. She was lifted gently and kissed on the head.

"Good job, munchkin." Shego pulled out a box from her shopping bags. "Look what I got you! Chocolate-covered digestive cookies... No more of that disgusting bland one that your mom got you." Shego teasingly made a face at Kim and Emmie babbled in delight.

Kim moved down the hall to help Shego with the bags. "Thanks for helping me get these... You know how Emmie gets when we're in the store."

Shego smirked. "She's quite the little rascal, eh?"

The last time Kim had gone to the store, Emmie had a bit too much fun pulling things from shelves that it nearly blew Kim's cover. The store manager had sternly told the redhead that the next time she came by, Emmie had better be well-behaved, otherwise, he'd charge her for the ruined items. Kim had simply nodded, pushed her sunglasses up her nose, and rushed out of the store with her purchases. Whenever she had to make a grocery run, she had asked Shego to come over and babysit. But when they were 'official', the older woman had offered to buy groceries in Kim's place.

Emmie giggled in response as she hugged the box of cookies. Shego ruffled her hair and handed Emmie back to Kim. She snuck Kim a kiss before going back to the car for more shopping bags. Kim smiled as she took Emmie to her high chair and opened the box of cookies.

"Don't eat all of them, ok? I'm just going to give you some, but you still have to eat dinner."

"Eat! Eat! Eat!" Emmie waved her arms in delight as Kim put down three cookies for her.

"She sure likes to eat," murmured Shego as she came into the kitchen with the rest of the groceries. "Who's going to grow up big and strong?" she cajoled as Emmie happily stuffed a cookie in her mouth.

"Me! Me! Me!"

Shego laughed in response and helped Kim unpack the bags. "They didn't have any blueberries, so I ended up getting raspberries... Emmie eats those, doesn't she?"

"I think she eats just about anything," said Kim as she watched her daughter finish off the second cookie. "It should be ok."

"It's a good thing she doesn't have food allergies... it'd be pretty tough if she was allergic to something tasty."

"How would she know if it's tasty if she won't eat it because she's allergic?"

"Kimmie, Kimmie, life is all about taking risks. She'd eat it first, realize it's tasty and then kaboom! Allergic reaction!"

"...Shego, that's not the best way to test for allergies."

The older woman waved her hand after putting the refrigerated items away. "I did that once as a kid. It was fun while it lasted - I swelled up like there was no tomorrow and my parents gave me hell for it."

"What were you allergic to?"

"Back then? Tree nuts."

"Was it a severe sort of allergy?"

"No, but I swelled like this," she made a gesture to emphasize a ballooned head, "from just a handful... But after the comet hit, nothing. All of us were pretty much immune to everything."

"Except for colds."

Shego laughed. "Yeah, except for colds."

Emmie burped. Both women looked at her and laughed. The toddler had somehow smeared chocolate all over her face.

"Can I...?"

Kim nodded as she watched Shego take Emmie upstairs to be cleaned. At first, she wasn't sure how they would both adjust to the fact that they needed to take care of Emmie while testing the waters of their relationship. But Shego just seemed natural at it that it didn't feel any different than being in a relationship without a child. Sure, there were small things like changing Emmie's diaper, cleaning up after all the messes, but Kim wasn't sure what they would both be doing if Emmie wasn't around. It's not like they could go out on a date in public - the media was still monitoring her parents' house and she was certain that Global Justice had eyes in places she didn't want to know about. For now, she thought, everything was going well. Shego seemed to enjoy taking care of Emmie as much as she did, and Shego honestly did care about Emmie, so everything was all right.

* * *

Ring, ring, ring.

"Hello?"

The person on the other end had taken a breath.

"Can I speak to Kim?"

"I'm sorry, Anne, she's giving Emmie a bath right now. Do you want to leave a message?"

"Can you ask her to call me back?"

"Sure."

Shego hung up and wrote Kim a note next to the phone. She wondered whether Anne seemed surprised or shocked that she answered the phone. Kim had told her that she would tell her parents about them, but the redhead never said when.

"Shego, can you grab me a towel?" shouted Kim from the bathroom. "Emmie has me soaked!"

Shego grabbed a towel from the linen closet and barged into the bathroom. Kim was, indeed, thoroughly soaked as Emmie laughed on in amusement.

"What... happened?" Shego had bathed Emmie before but all she got were small splashes from the toddler.

"Splash!" shouted Emmie as she scooped up water and tossed it in Shego's face.

Kim cringed and hoped the older woman wasn't mad. The water had made Shego's makeup run down her face. She took Emmie's hands and said in a stern voice, "No, Emmie. That's very bad! Don't do that!"

Shego used a sleeve to wipe off the water. Her makeup was ruined and she knew she probably had mascara running down her face, but she didn't mind. She got down to Emmie's level in the tub and looked the toddler in the eye.

Emmie stilled and stared back. Kim still held onto her daughter's hands, unsure what Shego would do next.

Boy, was Kim ever wrong.

Shego smirked as she scooped water from the tub and tossed it at Kim. The redhead sputtered as Emmie howled out in laughter.

"Shego! What the-"

The older woman winked and dried her hands on the towel she had brought in. "C'mon, munchkin, let's get you dry before your mom plans to hurt me." She scooped Emmie from the tub as Kim squeezed out water from her hair.

Before she left the bathroom, Shego winked at Kim. "You might want to take a shower while you're at it." She used her sleeve to wipe off the rest of her ruined mascara.

Kim glared at her girlfriend before closing the bathroom door. Much to her surprise, Shego returned ten minutes later when she was about to turn on the faucet for her shower.

"Shego?! What?!" shrieked Kim as she grabbed the shower curtain to cover herself.

"Oh, come on, don't be such a prude, Kimmie."

"What are you doing in here?"

Shego smirked as she crossed her arms. "You really think I was trying to be a Peeping Tom?" She shook her head and laughed. The redhead hadn't noticed it when she came in, but Shego was holding a large cloth. "No, Kimmie, I'm just wiping the floor since Emmie made it wet with her splashing. Don't want you tripping on the floor when you're done."

Kim had turned crimson in embarrassment (and from the fact that the shower curtain was the only thing within arm's reach with which to cover herself). "Oh... How considerate of you" was all she could say.

Shego chuckled as she crouched to wipe the floor. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Kim. We're both women."

Kim relaxed her grip on the curtain and mumbled "Yeah" in agreement. She watched Shego wipe the rest of the affected area.

"You know," Shego said as she lit up a hand and used it to dry the floor, "You should not buy see-through shower curtains if you don't want me peeking."

Kim gave a startled gasp that was met with Shego's laughter.

"I'm just joking, Kimmie. I don't peek... I'm done, so carry on." Shego took the dirty cloth with her and was about to walk out before she heard Kim mumble.

"Thanks... I'm sorry for assuming the worst."

Shego waved a hand. "It's, like you say, no big."

* * *

"Eeeegoooo!"

Anne looked at James. The Possible patriarch was not amused.

"This is the only thing she can say and it's because of that woman hanging around with Kim," he said.

"James, it doesn't mean anything if Emmie's first word is Shego's name," replied Anne. At the sound of her favourite lady's name, Emmie clapped her hands happily.

James frowned. "I will have to speak with Kim when we drop Emmie off."

"Maybe you're blowing this out of proportion, James. I spoke with Shego and it seems like she means no harm to Kim. They're friends now."

"Anne, she's funny folk... Not to mention a former criminal."

"Oh, come, now, James, didn't we raise Kimmie never to judge a book by its cover? Perhaps we should give Shego," Emmie babbled happily, "the benefit of the doubt. We don't know her as well as Kim."

James opened his newspaper and muttered, "Does Kim even know her at all?"

Anne looked quizzically at her husband before focusing her attention back to Emmie, who had found her lab coat interesting with all the pen pockets.

* * *

"Um, good night..."

They found themselves at Kim's doorstep again, but this time, there was no baby to interrupt them.

"Do... Do you want to come in for a drink?" The redhead wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. It had been so long since she last went on a date that she wasn't sure whether asking the question would scare away the older woman.

Shego tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. She had taken off her cap in the park since both women suddenly realized their hats were in their way of kissing. It was awkward, but also funny since they both fumbled before Shego muttered something that sounded like "fuck it," tossed her cap to the side, and kissed Kim. Now her hair was in disarray and she held the cap in her hand.

She seemed to have similar thoughts but she shrugged and simply let Kim lead her inside. It was just a drink, nothing more, nothing less.

* * *

"She's been responding well to treatments."

Shego remained silent as Betty proceeded to give her a run-down of her doctors' reports.

"...so they predict she'll be in tip-top shape by the end of the year." The head of Global Justice looked at her visitor. The woman looked haggard, as if she hadn't slept in days. "Shego?"

The woman snapped out of her daze. "Huh?"

"Did you hear what I said? The prospect of complete recovery is high."

"Oh, ok."

"What's bothering you? You know our conversations are off the record and kept in confidence."

The woman shook her head. "It's nothing. Was just wondering about-"

"She's going to be all right. Don't worry."

But Betty was wrong. Her whole team of doctors were wrong. Maybe it was a new strain, maybe it was fate rejecting Shego's repentance as a criminal, maybe it was just how things were meant to be. The disease ravaged Kim's body, leaving very little for anyone to do but to accept the fate that had been bestowed on someone so kind and caring.


	7. fireflies lit up our skies

**&& fireflies lit up our skies**

* * *

"Mom!" Kim hugged her mother at door and let her parents in. The older Possibles had taken Emmie for the weekend to their cottage to give Kim a break and to dote on their granddaughter. Kim had opted not to tag along since it would attract unwanted attention and Emmie needed to gradually become less dependent on her.

"How was Emmie?" ask Kim as she took the baby basket from her dad. The baby in question was fast asleep and was holding onto Mister Tibbles tightly.

"Very good, she's very well-behaved. She only woke us up once in the night."

"Kimmie-cub, there's something we need to speak with you about," said James as he handed Emmie's playthings to his daughter.

"Sure," replied Kim. She gestured for her parents to take a seat in the living room and then brought them tea.

"It's about Emmie's first word," said her father sternly.

Kim remained silent as she poured out the tea. It was only when she was done that she spoke.

"What about it?" she asked nonchalantly.

"Emmie's first word is Shego's _name_," stressed her father. "Just how often does she visit you?"

"Enough times for Emmie to know who she is," answered Kim vaguely.

"What does someone like her have a thing to do with Emmie?"

"_Someone like her_ has been giving me advice to how to handle a baby like Emmie," said Kim tersely. "Emmie can be quite a handful, you and Mom know that."

"Then we can help you. We are Emmie's grandparents after all. We raised you, so we know best."

Kim ran her fingers through Emmie's hair. "You might know best when it comes to me and the Dweebs, but I am Emmie's mother," said Kim softly.

James bristled at the comment and put his mug on the coffee table. Anne put a hand on James' arm as a signal to not say anything further.

"What your father is trying to say, Kimmie, is that he is concerned about having Shego around. We're not sure what her motives are by being around."

"Do you honestly think that Shego would try to hurt me or Emmie?" asked Kim in a strained voice. If her parents were so opposed to her having Shego as a friend, they would not react kindly to the notion of them dating. Kim took in a breath before continuing. "She comes over to babysit when I ask. She even helped me changed Emmie's diaper several times. I don't think she has any hidden agenda if she's willing to do that."

James was about to speak when Anne took control. "I understand that you know her better than us, but we just want you to take precautions in case anything happens."

Kim let that sink in, but she knew that was simply said to sugar-coat her parents' message: don't hang around with someone like Shego, she's nothing but trouble.

She nodded in understanding and stood up. It was rude, but she honestly didn't want to have her parents around if they were going to dictate her on how to raise Emmie and how to live her life.

Anne followed suit and tugged on her husband. Perhaps they had been too direct with Kim, but what was said was said and yet couldn't take any of it back.

* * *

"It's awfully quiet without Emmie around," said Shego as she took the mug that Kim handed her.

"Yeah, it is. I actually miss having her around... And it's only been almost an entire day."

"Your parents will be back tomorrow night, so it won't be too bad."

"Yeah." Kim sat beside Shego on the couch. Their shoulders were touching and Shego had shifted to put an arm around Kim.

The older woman gave the redhead a light squeeze. "Don't worry about it."

Kim wasn't sure what Shego meant but she leaned in response. It was nice to have someone to lean on again, she thought. Physically and emotionally.

Shego kissed the top of Kim's head and gently rubbed the redhead's shoulder. She chuckled at a thought that made Kim look up in surprise.

"What's funny?"

"I just thought of how we're going to have to explain _this_ to your parents..."

"Oh... but how is that funny?"

"I don't know. I don't even know how we'll explain 'us' to them."

"We'll figure something out in time."

Shego nodded as Kim shyly wrapped her arms around her. "Careful, Kimmie, you're going to squeeze the life out of me again."

The redhead laughed.

* * *

"Mom?"

The redhead opened her eyes. It was another night at the hospital for tests. She looked to the door. Shego was there leaning against the wall, watching.

She let Emmie hold her hand.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better today." She smiled at her daughter. She had asked Shego not to tell Emmie about the nature of leukaemia, but only that she was sick and had to stay over at the hospital for a few days. Shego had initially objected to the idea, but saw Kim's point: the truth might scare Emmie since they all didn't know what was going on. The symptoms took everyone by surprise and, since Emmie was so young, they weren't sure how she would react to the possibility of-

She blinked. Emmie was holding her hand and was peering at her. It was not time to think of the disease. It was time to be calm and show Emmie that she wasn't afraid.

She cleared her throat. "How was school?"

As Emmie showed her pictures and writing assignments, she smiled. She was pleased with how Shego tried to keep things normal at home, but even she could tell that Emmie missed her presence at home. It just wasn't the same.

"Are you going to come home soon?"

"Hopefully by the end of this week, Emmie." She lightly squeezed Emmie's hand.

Shego had walked over to bed and put a hand on Emmie's shoulder. "Don't worry, your mom is going to be fine."

Emmie nodded and let go of her hand.

Oh, how she wished to be out of this sterile room and to hold the ones she loved.

* * *

They laid sprawled on the couch. Kim could hear Shego's heart beating as well as her own. Shego was lying on her back whereas Kim was lying snugly on top.

Normally, Kim would be blushing since she was in close proximity to Shego, but it felt kind of right, just to be able to lie down and forget about her worries.

"Kim?"

"Hmm?"

"If someone was to tell you, ten years ago, that we'd be together like this, I'm sure you'd laugh."

Kim shifted so she could see Shego's face. "I wouldn't burst out laughing, if that's what you mean."

"You wouldn't be disgusted?"

"What about?"

"Huh. That's strange."

"What?"

"Back when we were enemies, I'd always thought you to be a little Miss Priss."

"Just because I always obsessed about boys didn't mean I did not like girls too. You know how high school can be."

"So you mean to say you've had your fair share of girl crushes, but didn't act on them?"

"Something like that."

"I'm beginning to think you could've had something better than settling with the Buffoon, but who am I to judge? I don't know the clumsy doof."

Kim shrugged. "Things happen, etcetera, etcetera."

"That, they do."

Kim slowly sat up and stretched.

"Sleepy?"

"Yeah, it's a bit strange to not have to put Emmie to bed tonight, but usually I turn in early."

Shego looked at her watch. "I guess I should go."

"Um..."

Shego saw that the redhead was struggling to say something. She tilted her head to prompt Kim to continue.

"Do you... want to sleep over? I-I-I'm not used to being all by myself anymore..." muttered Kim.

The request surprised Shego, so her cheeks coloured slightly. "Sure. Just don't kick me in your sleep."

"Why would I kick you?"

"People have the strangest sleeping positions, so you never know..." joked Shego. She forced a laugh, trying to rid the air of awkwardness between them.

"Shego, if you don't want to... Just say so," said Kim as she nervously tried to smooth out the wrinkles on her shirt.

"I don't mind as long as you don't," murmured Shego.

Kim responded by taking the woman by the hand and leading her upstairs.

* * *

Knock, knock.

The door swung open.

"I brought dinner?"

She shuffled her way inside and placed the contents of her bag on the kitchen counter.

"You ok?"

A nod.

"You sure?"

A shake of the head.

She took the redhead in her arms. "It's something small, nothing big. I'm pretty sure my first word was something worse."

"Shego, it's not that... It's the whole sitch where they don't trust you, don't think I should hang around you... Don't think I should-"

Shego placed two fingers on Kim's mouth to prevent her from finishing the sentence. "I think you shouldn't dwell on it. I know I'm not well-liked anywhere-"

"But here. Emmie and I like you."

"Right. My point being is that you get used to it and you learn to filter things out."

"I'll try."

"And I'll try to get on your parents' good side... Hopefully." She smiled at the redhead, hoping that would calm her. She had received a frantic call from the redhead right after she got home from the store. She only heard bits and pieces because her girlfriend was being very inarticulate while frustrated.

Kim sighed. "All right. I won't worry."

"So, where's the little munchkin?"

"Still sleeping since my parents brought her back."

"Time to wake her for dinner, I guess."

"Do you want to get her? I'm sure she'll be glad to see you."

"Sure." Shego started to head out of the kitchen when she stopped, turned around, and gave Kim a kiss on the mouth. It took Kim by surprise, but as their foreheads touched, Shego murmured, "Everything'll be all right."

* * *

"Oooh, look! Look!" Emmie was pointing at the glowing insect flying around.

"That's a firefly, Emmie," said Kim as she propped up one part of the tent. She frowned as one side collapsed. She had only been at it for half an hour and still the tent wasn't up. She blew a stray strand of hair from her face in frustration.

"You're not very good at this," mused Shego as she started a fire several feet away.

"Camping was never my thing."

"Then why did you suggest we go?" laughed Shego.

"Because I thought it'd be fun..." Kim stared at the tent poles in her hands and then watched Emmie chase fireflies. "At least for Emmie."

"C'mere and let me see," said Shego as she scooted over to the redhead. She took one of the poles and fitted it through. "Hold onto this and I'll do the other end."

Within minutes, the tent was put up.

"There, it wasn't so hard."

"It was only easy because I was helping."

"Kimmie, are you upset that you needed help with putting up a tent?" chuckled Shego. When the redhead didn't answer, she smiled smugly.

"What?! What's so funny?!"

"We're still competitive even after all these years," grinned Shego. "So that explains why you don't like it when I top-"

Kim put a hand over Shego's mouth. The redhead hissed, "Behave! Emmie's around."

Shego merely kissed Kim's palm and waggled her eyebrows suggestively. The redhead shook her head in amusement. "I don't even want to know what's going on in your head right now."

"I do," laughed Shego. "You, me, in the woods..."

Kim bit back a smile as Emmie made her way towards them.

"Look what I found!" grinned the four year-old. She held out her palm and the object in her hand caused Kim to squeak. Shego peered at it, looked back at Kim, and then laughed.

"It's just a snail, Kim."

"Snails are gross!" the older redhead stated. "Emmie, put it back on the ground where you found it!"

"But, Mom, we're going to crush it if we put it back on the ground!"

Kim blinked. Emmie had a point, but she really hoped Emmie didn't want to keep it as a pet. All things slimy were gross.

"Emmie, why don't we find a safe spot for Mister Snail and leave him there? How about somewhere near there?" Shego pointed to a faraway spot that wasn't near their trail.

The younger redhead nodded enthusiastically. "Come on, Auntie Shego, let's put him there." Emmie took the woman by the hand and they proceeded to walk away before Kim shouted, "Make sure you come back before it gets too dark!" The sky was slowly changing colour - the orange hues made the reserve look like it was painted on a canvas. Kim looked at her watch. It was a little past six, so she figured it'd be best to finish setting up before it got too dark to find things in their packs.

Kim took the sleeping bags and unrolled them in the tent. When she was done, she started dinner. Much to her family's surprise, Shego had managed to teach Kim to make really simple meals with minimal amounts of effort.

Since they were on a fairly simple trail for Emmie's sake, Kim had packed pre-cooked meals that only needed to be reheated. She took out the container labelled 'lasagna' and gently put the contents into her pot. She let the stove heat up a bit before she heard Shego and Emmie return.

"You came back just in time... I'm warming up dinner," said the redhead.

"Yay!" exclaimed Emmie. "We put the snail near the water."

"Stream. There's a stream just south of here... Close enough to its natural habitat, I hope," supplied Shego. She took a pack of wipes from her gear and wiped Emmie's hands as well as her own.

After eating and making do with dirty dishes (to be done in the morning), Shego built a bigger fire and dug out a bag of marshmallows from her pack. She beckoned at Emmie to one over to help her put marshmallows on some sticks.

Kim watched the two as she prepared some cocoa. They had only been together for three years, but Shego was more than Kim had ever asked for. The older woman was definitely more mature than she was back in her henchwoman days and continued to be a parent figure for Emmie. It did trouble Kim a bit with whether it was necessary to explain the nature of their relationship to Emmie. The four year-old had never asked questions about her father, let alone did she know about her biological parents. Emmie had accepted Shego just as she had accepted Kim as her mother. Would the truth hurt her? Or should it never be talked about? Kim knew Emmie had every right to know, but when was a good time to tell her? Certainly not now, she thought as she watched Emmie sneak a marshmallow in her mouth.

"Emmie, don't eat too many at once. You just had dinner," said the redhead as she brought over the cocoa.

The four year-old grinned toothily: she had stuffed not one, but two, marshmallows in her mouth. She mumbled something before Shego shook a finger at her. "Don't speak, you might choke."

Emmie chewed and chewed before finally saying, "Chubby bunny!"

"That's not a fun game to play," said Kim. "You might put too many in your mouth and you won't be able to finish them."

"Aww," whined Emmie. "Hey, Auntie Shego, how many can you put in your mouth?"

Shego gave Kim a shrug as Emmie handed her marshmallows from the bag.

"Shego, don't encourage her," laughed Kim as Shego's face began to balloon with the marshmallows in her mouth.

"Wow! Ten!" exclaimed Emmie. "What about you, Mom?"

"I think we'll run out of marshmallows," said Kim as she pointed at the almost empty bag.

"Aww."

"How about we'll find out when we get home?" asked Shego as she finally swallowed the sugary monstrosity she put in her mouth.

Kim smiled. The word 'home' had such a different meaning when she was with Shego and Emmie. It meant happier days in her townhouse complex. Her relationship with her parents was somewhat strained since the day she stormed out of her parents' house in a rage after her conversation with her father. Anne was more sympathetic than James and had grown to accept the relationship as Emmie grew up. The Possible patriarch, on the other hand, was firm on his stance that Shego was up to no good. Of course, it always made for awkward family gatherings and dinners since James would completely ignore Shego. You can't please everyone, thought Kim as she watched Shego show Emmie how to roast the marshmallows to a golden brown colour.

Sensing that they were being watched, Shego looked up and let her eyes lock onto Kim's. As if she read the redhead's thoughts, Shego's expression softened, silently telling Kim that things will be fine. The redhead broke out into a smile, grabbed the box of graham crackers in her pack, and scooted over to Emmie and showed her "The Possible Secret to Making the Perfect S'More."

As the fire slowly died out, Emmie was lying down on the grass and looking up at the sky. Very few stars could be seen on this quiet evening, but a flicker of light caught the child's attention.

"Mom! Look!" Emmie pointed somewhere right of her. Kim squinted and saw them.

Shego put out the campfire and the three of them sat in the darkness as a small swarm of fireflies fluttered in their direction.

Emmie giggled as they flew close to her. She made several attempts to catch one but then let them go as they glowed even brighter in her hands.

Kim and Shego were sitting beside each other on a log. Shego had draped an arm over Kim and murmured, "This was a good idea."

"It was, wasn't it?" sighed the redhead as she leaned into Shego's touch.

Shego simply smiled as she watched Emmie dance around with the fireflies.

Kim smiled as well as she kissed Shego on the mouth. "Should we also make wishes?"

"Aren't those for shooting stars?"

"It doesn't hurt to do it anyway."

Shego gently leaned her head on Kim's. "You go first then."

Kim closed her eyes and then nodded when she was done.

_Every day's a gift and we'll be all right._

* * *

Emmie put down her pencil and stared at the piece of paper before her. "I think I'm done."

Shego came by and peered at the paper. "That looks good... All right, time for bed then."

"Can you tell me a story?"

"Sure, but only after you brush your teeth."

Emmie ran off to do just that while Shego cleaned up the living room. She put Emmie's homework in the colourful backpack that was leaning against a dining room chair and organised all of Emmie's folders.

The munchkin was all grown up now and was in the third grade. Shego had done her best to raise Emmie normally, but because of her mother's connections, they had various security and privacy measures in place to prevent the media from finding out about Kim's relationship with Shego, and the fact that Shego was now taking care of Emmie.

Shego's relationship with the Possibles continued to be strained after Kim's passing. Anne would stop by every now and then to check up on Emmie and would give Shego sympathetic looks when James was mentioned in conversation. He had not fully forgiven Shego for not notifying him of Kim's last moments, but he did stop by every now and then to catch up with his granddaughter.

It was a bit strange for Emmie to not have her mom around for her seventh and eighth birthdays, as Kim would plan elaborate parties for Emmie, but somehow they had managed. Shego had opted for simplicity in the years that followed, mostly because Emmie had wanted simple family gatherings, Possible grandparents included. Preserving Kim's memory was all the they could do now as they lived in the present.

Some days, Shego thought it was unfair that Kim has left her so soon. But, the memories of the past were what made her smile as she continued toward the future with Emmie. She just hoped she was doing a good job. In her will, Kim had specified that Shego be Emmie's guardian until she reached the age of eighteen - from then on, Emmie was free to remain with Shego or do whatever she wanted.

Oh, if only Kim was around to see how Emmie had grown, Shego thought. It had only been two years since Kim's passing, but Emmie seemed to become an independent eight year-old who had every bit of her mother's spunk. Despite not being related to Kim by blood, Emmie had somehow adopted Kim's mannerisms and outlook on life. It was, perhaps, entertaining for Shego because Emmie did seem like a miniature version of Kim, except the junior redhead was brash when the boys at school picked on her. Maybe that came from me, Shego thought. She had always told Emmie to stand up for herself, even when people said mean things to her. One incident occurred when Emmie had slugged a classmate when he called her abnormal for not having a father. Of course, Shego was called in and had to explain to Emmie that violence wasn't the answer, but to stay strong when being taunted.

"They're mean pricks."

"Emmie, don't call them names... It makes you just as bad as them."

"But they were making fun of you and Mom."

"I know. Hey, maybe they're just jealous that you have awesome parents!" joked Shego.

"Really?"

"You never know. Maybe they want someone as cool as Mom or me as a parent." It was an arrogant thing to say, but Shego wanted to raise Emmie to stand on two feet at times like these.

"Ok."

"Can you pinky-swear that you won't hit anyone again?" Shego stuck out her pinky and waited for Emmie to respond.

"Ok, I won't hit anyone again, Mommy." Emmie looped her pinky around Shego's.

"Good." Shego ruffled the munchkin's hair and that was that.

Parenting, whether Shego wanted to believe it or not, was hard work. Much harder when one's other half was not around.

But she knew that Kim says looking down at them and smiling.

"Every day's a gift," murmured Shego as Emmie came out of the bathroom all decked out in her Cuddle Bunny pyjamas.

"Can you tell me a story about Mom's adventures?" asked the eight year-old as she climbed into her bed.

"Sure, which one do you want to hear about?"

"The one where she met you."

Shego smiled. Everyone gets second chances, and she wouldn't trade away her past for a moment like this.

~**End**~

* * *

**Author's Notes:** I admit, I had a really difficult time writing this (short) story. It's not every day that I do explore character death: in all honesty, I had contemplated making this AU, but I don't think it would've had the same effect.

Also, the flashbacks are all out of order, sorry that you have to scramble around to piece things together - it's intentional...

Story and chapter titles are from "Telescope" by Yellowcard. When I first listened to this song, the first emotion I felt was sadness because of this line: "But wherever you're resting (I'm carrying) / I'm carrying your line." I assume that _line_ means bloodline, so perhaps something tragic happened, in the song, to the singer's loved one... and this story formed in the back of my head for many days. I just wasn't sure how to put it into words. A lot is untold and left to the reader because I feel that song meanings take on various forms during different listen-to's, so I shall just leave this as is.


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